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Initially, finding high-quality content for your blog and then getting people to see that content is the most important thing you can do with your time.
However, as your blog evolves and your readership grows, your new task is to put some time into monetizing your blog. Otherwise, your blog won’t pay for itself or result in an additional income stream.
Below, I will explain 7 ways you can monetize your blog. Change your blog from a drain on your financial resources to an asset.
1. Use Google AdSense
One possible source of income is Google AdSense ads. The advantage to this approach is that it is simple way to monetize.
Tip: If youâre using Blogger.com, Google AdSense is already built in. It is one of the Google services. If you’ re using WordPress there are many plug-ins and themes for WordPressthat allow you to insert Google AdSense code.
To add Google Adsense ads to your blog, create an AdSense account, generate some lines of code, and then place those lines of code in your website. From there, the script will generate ads that are contextually-matched to your site; and will generate revenue whenever they are clicked.
Itâs important to note that there disadvantages to consider with Google AdSense. For instance, you will probably earn less on banner ads and you will also have less control over what ads are displayed on your site.
Tip: Having said that, Google AdSense allows you to block some kinds of ads, keywords or domains from showing up on your blog.
 2. Sell Advertising Space
 In general, selling advertising space is not an option for low traffic sites. However, if your blog receives a lot of traffic and you can back this up with documentation, such as traffic records, then selling advertising space may be a lucrative option.
When it comes to selling ad space, you will have a few different options.
You can choose between text ads, banner ads, and image ads. You can also choose whether you want advertisers to pay per click or to pay per view.
If you decide to go this route, you can use the following sources to find ad space buyers:
- http://www.webmaster-talk.com/buy-and-sell-advertising-space/
- http://www.sitepoint.com
- http://www.warriorforum.com
3. Seek Out Sponsorship Opportunities
In addition to (or as an alternative to) selling ad space on your site, consider seeking out sponsors.
A sponsors could agree to provide a free prize for a contest in exchange for being mentioned on your blog in the days leading up to the contest.
Alternatively, you could have long-term sponsors for your blog, who make a monthly donation in exchange for your promotion of their products and for including a banner on your site that references them as a sponsor.
4. Sell Your Own Products/Services
Another way to generate revenue through your blog is to create your own products or to sell existing products.
If you donât already have products, consider creating your first information product: an ebook, a short report, or video or audio content. If you donât feel comfortable creating these products yourself, then you can hire a freelancer (see http://www.elance.com or http://www.guru.com) to create the product for you.
Once the product is ready, you can sell it on your blog by accepting payments via PayPal.com or ClickBank.com. You might want to start by introducing your product through a blog entry; however, at a later point, promote your own products in a permanent position on your blog, such as in a top banner or in the sidebar.
5. Promote Affiliate Products/Services
In addition to creating products to sell, or selling existing products that you own, promote other people’s products as an affiliate.
Regardless of what niche you are in, you will be able to find affiliate programs to join with lucrative and timely payments.
To begin researching the kinds of products you could promote as an affiliate, visit ClickBank.com, which has a wide variety of different electronic affiliate products. Among these, you can look for ones that that have high âgravityâ scores, as well as high commission percentages.
If you want to promote services and physical products, you have additional options, including the following:
6. Post Paid Reviews
Another way to monetize your blog is to join a âpay per postâ program. These programs allow you to post positive reviews about products in exchange for monetary compensation.
At first, you might think this is unethical to pretend a product is good in order to get money in exchange. But, in fact, you donât need to do this at all.
Instead, what you can do is focus on products that you have already used and would recommend to your blog readers. You can then recommend them genuinely and from your own experience, but youâll now receive compensation for doing so.
You can find sites that facilitate pay-per-post exchanges at the following URLs:
7. Offer Freemium Content
The term âfreemiumâ refers to a business model where the basic content or service is free, but the advanced features require visitors to pay.
This approach can be successfully extended to blogs in the following way:
- First, let your usual posts and content make up the âfreeâ part.
- Next, add some âpremiumâ content, such as a exclusive posts, graphic design items, cheat sheets, coupons, reports, or WordPress themes.
- Only allow paid subscribers to access your premium section.
Next, promote your paid section to your free members, so that more and more of them move into your “premium” group over time.
Additionally, consider making the entry fee very low (perhaps $5/month), so that visitors find it easy to say “yes” to your offer.
Conclusion
Monetizing your blog will result in an additional income stream for your business. It’s very gratifying to grow a blog and an audience and provide products and resources that your audience values.
Related articles
- 20 Ways to Make More Money from Your Blog (problogger.net)
- 5 Alternatives To Google AdSense (bloggingtips.com)
